“This is what it means to be loved… when someone wants to touch you, to be tender…” 
― Banana Yoshimoto, The Lake

I was living 2,864  miles away from the place that I was born and raised, when I received a call that my mother was in the hospital and that her condition was serious.  Immediately, I flew to Montréal and went straight to her bedside.  Despite her illness, she lit up like a Christmas tree when she saw me.  I gathered her in my arms and held her tight.  The words that she uttered not only made me weep, but also gave me great pause.  She said  “Ahhhh, I had forgotten how wonderful it feels to be embraced, to be touched, to be held!”  She closed her eyes, as if to capture the moment and store it in memory. 

She passed away eight years ago today.

The sense of touch is often considered the least important of the five senses.

I would argue to the contrary.

Image via ameri-care.net.